Why does HBOT (hyperbaric oxygen therapy) help autism? If you look at what is the root cause in most cases of autism spectrum disorders, they are viral, bacterial, and fungal infections. These are able to successfully attack the nervous system when the immune system is in a weakened state. When this happens, the nervous system becomes inflamed and cannot function or develop properly. This is often why you see children develop normally until an outside environmental insult (virus, fungi, bacteria, and trauma) causes a sudden lack of development and regression in some cases.

So, HBOT can help in several aspects. First, viruses, fungi, and some bacteria cannot live in an oxygen enriched environment. Because HBOT saturates the entire body with 100% hospital grade oxygen at pressure, the root cause of the nervous system inflammation can be eliminated.

Second, HBOT is used to reduce inflammation. Dr. Kendal Stewart of Neurosensory Centers of America explained it like this,” if you injure your knee and it swells up, how is that knee going to heal? Well you have to rest the knee and let the inflammation go down before it can heal. If you continue to walk on it, the knee will stay inflamed and may not heal”. Once the inflammation in the nervous system has gone, it can continue to develop where it left off.

If the autism is caused by a traumatic injury, HBOT helps to increase the body’s natural production of stem cells. These stem cells will be used to repair damage caused in the body by the injury. This is also why HBOT helps non-healing wounds and people who have had concussion.

Disclaimer: The FDA has not approved HBOT as a treatment for autism. For a list of FDA approved conditions click here.